| Objective: In mental health treatment of children, studies have indicated that incorporating parents into the treatment improves outcomes. Yet, little is known about clinical decision-making regarding the use of parental involvement (PI). This investigation examined clinicians' beliefs about PI and their reported use of interventions directed towards parents. In addition, clinician factors such as training, experience, professional discipline, and work setting were examined for possible associations to the use of PI. Methods: The beliefs and reported use of PI of 40 mental health clinicians were assessed in their work with children aged 6 to 12 using a self-report survey. Beliefs and use of PI for children were examined transdiagnostically as well as for each of 5 common presenting problems: anxiety, ADHD, conduct/ODD, depression, and trauma. Clinicians also reported on the factors most influential to their decision-making. Results: Results showed that clinicians strongly endorsed PI and believed it improved child outcomes. Clinicians reported directing an average of 49% of interventions towards parents, and there were no substantial differences in reported PI use among each of the 5 disorders examined. Primary influences on clinical decision-making were the child's diagnoses or age, followed by parental stress and desire to work with the clinician. Clinicians weighed their belief in the effectiveness of PI as more important than their knowledge of relevant research studies on PI. Conclusions: The findings of this investigation demonstrated that clinicians reported use of PI is not strongly related to guidelines from the research literature, particularly for conduct/ODD. Increased incorporation of relevant research literature into clinical decision-making is recommended, with the goal of applying PI where it is most-strongly-established as effective. |
